While she seemingly flew under the radar during the early weeks of American Idol's live shows this season, it wasn't long before Hollie Cavanagh made her mark. At only 17 years old, she displayed a vocal range far beyond her years and experienced the most obvious growth in the competition. Unfortunately, after making it to the Top 4, Hollie's luck ran out when she received the lowest number of votes and was eliminated just short of the semi-finals.

Did you agree with the judges and Jimmy Iovine, who said that you didn't get the emotion of 'I Can't Make You Love Me'?
"I definitely stand by that song - I love that song and I think the lyrics are so beautiful and I've loved it for so long. I'm really glad I got to perform it. As far as Jimmy said, I definitely felt that song and understood the meaning of it, but I guess it didn't come across the way he wanted it to. That's fine - I rewatched it and I do agree there were some points I could have made more or did more with it, but I stand by it and I certainly enjoyed performing it."

You said you had a gut feeling you'd be voted off this week. Why is that?
"It was definitely someting different about that Thursday. I'm not sure what it was, I guess it was just my gut was telling me. I was just preparing myself for it but at the same time staying hopeful, because you never know what could happen. I'm not quite sure what the feeling was, but it was different for me that Thursday."

What kind of album would you like to make?
"I'd like to be kind of on the pop side but with a little bit of soul. I'd like to make music that's on the top of the charts right now, so somewhere along those lines."

What was it like living in the Idol mansion?
"It's crazy! The house is so big and as it got to be fewer of us left, it seemed bigger and bigger. It was a lot of fun and I was blessed to be able to live in a house like that."

What was your best moment on the show?
"I think probably when I sang 'Rollin' in the Deep' and 'Son of a Preacher Man', that was definitely my turning point on the show... but definitely also 'The Climb' because that was my first standing ovation."

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There are only three singers left, now - who will take it all?
"I honestly have no idea. I'm definitely with America and the judges on this one and have no idea because the show could go either way, you just don't know. Whoever it is, it'll be great because they're all amazing. It'll definitely be a fight to the finish line."

What's unique about each of the finalists?
"Phillip Phillips is very unique in the way he performs - you don't see a lot of people perform like that. He has his own style and his voice is amazing. Joshua Ledet takes you to a whole other place when he sings. If you watch the show, he amazes everyone each week. And of course Jessica Sanchez is only 16 and the way she sings, she sounds lke she's in her 20s. She's amazing, as well as the other two, so it's definitely going to be tough. The finale is going to be a big one!"

You seemed to form a really close friendship with Josh and Skylar. Tell us about that.
"Josh and I got really close in Hollywood week and kind of after that, we were attached at the hip. Any time that we had - when we would rehearse I'd watch him rehearse and when we went out to dinner, me, Josh and Skylar would always be out. Any time we had, we hung out and kept each other sane."

What's it been like to have so much praise from such big names like Carrie Underwood and Lauren Alaina?
"It's been amazing. It's great to know that they watch the show, especially Carrie. I sang her song and it's great to get such good feedback since it's her song. It's crazy, the support we get, and it's just really a blessing."

What did you do to alleviate the pressure of the competiton?
"We'd just kind of hang out at the house or go and get dinner or something like that. There's not much we do, we don't go crazy because we're tired most of the time, so we just hang out with each other and take our minds off our songs and play jokes on each other."

You were seen as a dark horse in the competition before. Do you see your own growth in the process?
"I take it as a compliment, I guess you could say. I never looked into what everyone was saying. I was really just focusing week by week and making sure my songs were right and good enough. I wanted to go up there and improve each week and people were seeing that. I definitely feel like I've grown so much, so I'm really proud of that."

What was your hardest week?
"Billy Joel week - that was not a great one for me! It wasn't really my style and I had, like, two different songs and then I ended up with 'Honesty' and I'd never really heard it, so I was learning it. It was a tough one but I got through it, so I was glad!"

Do you think a woman can win at this point?
"I think it's tough for girls now because there are a lot of girl votes that go for the boys, but you never know on this show. The three that are left, they all have the biggest chance to win, so they'll all bring it each week. It'll be tough for America, I know that! Jessica is amazing and is definitely capable of winning, but so are Josh and Phillip, so it's a tough one."

You got some good advice in the competition. What was the best?
"I think I've definitely always felt loyal to Jennifer Lopez just because she's always been rooting for me and had my back since last year, so she's definitely been a big inspiration for me. In my mentor session, I would definitely say Stevie Nicks was a big one for me. We kind of had a moment and it got really personal and beyond the lines of being in a singing competition. She really cared about us in that moment and wanted to help."

What will you miss and what are you most looking forward to?
"I'll miss the American Idol crew and production team. It's so fun working with them, they're all so nice and loveable and you have such a good time, so that'll be hard. Even leaving the Idol stage... you spend so much time there that it becomes your home, but we're all so excited about the tour and singing for our fans. We won't be judged and can just enjoy our singing."